TheDominican Republic (Spanish:República Dominicana) is a country in theWest Indies that occupies the eastern five-eighths ofHispaniola. It has an area of 48,670 km2, including offshore islands. The land border shared withHaiti, which occupies the western three-eighths of the island,[1][2] is 376 km long.[3] The maximum length, east to west, is 390 km from Punta de Agua to Las Lajas, on the border with Haiti. The maximum width, north to south, is 265 km from Cape Isabela to Cape Beata.[4] Thecapital,Santo Domingo, is located on the south coast.
The Dominican Republic is a country with manymountains, and the highest peaks of theWest Indies are found here. The chains of mountains show a direction northwest–southeast, except in the Southern peninsula (in Haiti) where they have a direction west–east. The mountains are separated byvalleys with the same general direction.
From north to south, the mountain ranges and valleys are:[6]
Cordillera Septentrional (in English, "Northern Range"). It runs parallel to the north coast, with extensions to the northwest, theTortuga Island, and to the southeast, theSamaná Peninsula (with itsSierra de Samaná). Its highest mountain isDiego de Ocampo, close to Santiago, with 1,249 m. There are several small plains between this range and the Atlantic Ocean. Rivers are short and most of them flow to the north.
TheCibao Valley (Dominican Republic) is the largest and the most important valley of the country. This long valley stretches from North Haiti, where is calledPlaine du Nord, to Samaná Bay. It can be divided in two sections: the northwestern part is theYaque del Norte Valley (orLínea Noroeste) and the easternYuna Valley (orVega Real, English:Royal Valley). TheVega Real is the most fertile area in the country, with a high population density.
TheCordillera Central (also calledSierra del Cibao) is the island's most rugged and imposing feature and is known in Haiti as theMassif du Nord ("Northern Massif"). The highest mountains of the West Indies are in this range:Pico Duarte, 3,098 m, and others above 3,000 m. Near the center of the island, this range turns southward and is calledSierra de Ocoa, finishing near the city of Azua de Compostela, on the Caribbean coast. Another branch,Cordillera Oriental orSierra del Seibo, is separated from the main chain by akarstic region (Los Haitises) and with a west–east direction; it is located south of Samaná Bay.
Cordillera Oriental landscape in Dominican Republic.
TheSan Juan Valley andPlain of Azua are big valleys south of theCordillera Central with altitude from 0 to 600 m.
TheSierra de Neiba, with Mount Neiba the highest mountain with 2,279 m. An extension to the southeast ofSierra de Neiba is theSierra Martín García (Loma Busú, 1,350 m).
TheHoya de Enriquillo orNeiba Valley is a remarkable valley, with a west–east direction, of low altitude (on average 50 m with some points below sea level) and with a great salt lake: theEnriquillo Lake.
TheSierra de Bahoruco, calledMassif de la Selle in Haiti. This southern group of mountains have a geology very different from the rest of the island.
Llano Costero del Caribe (in English, "Caribbean Coastal Plain") is in the southeast of the island (and of the Dominican Republic). It is a largesavanna east ofSanto Domingo.
The Dominican Republic is atropical,maritime nation. Owing to its diverse mountainous topography, the country's climate shows considerable variation for its size, and has the most diverse climate zones of all the Caribbean islands, includingsubtropical highland climates (Cwb),oceanic climates (Cfb) andhot semi-arid climates (BSh) along the usualtropical savanna (Aw),monsoon (Am), andrainforest (Af) climates typical of a Caribbean nation. Conditions are ameliorated in many areas by elevation and by the northeasttrade winds, which blow steadily from theAtlantic all year long. The annual meantemperature is 25 °C (77 °F); regional mean temperatures range from 18 °C (64.4 °F) in the heart of theCordillera Central (Constanza) to as high as 27 °C (80.6 °F) in arid regions. Temperatures rarely rise above 32 °C (89.6 °F), and freezing temperatures only occur in winter in the highest mountains. The average temperature inSanto Domingo in January is 24 °C (75.2 °F), and 27 °C (80.6 °F) in July.
The rain season for the northern coast is from November to January. For the rest of the country, the rain season is from May to November. The average annual rainfall is 1,346 mm (53.0 in), with extremes of 2,500 mm (98.4 in) or more in the mountainous northeast (the windward side of the island) and 500 mm (19.7 in) in the southwestern valleys. The western valleys, along the Haitian border, remain relatively dry, with less than 760 mm (29.9 in) of annual precipitation, due to therain shadow effect caused by the central and northern mountain ranges. The northwestern and southeastern extremes of the country are also arid.
The Dominican Republic is occasionally damaged by tropical storms and hurricanes, which originate in the mid-Atlantic and southeastern Caribbean from June until November (mainly from August to October) each year.
There are several smaller islands and cays that are part of Dominican territory. The largest islands are:
Saona, close to the southeastern coast of Hispaniola, in theCaribbean Sea. It has an area of 117 km2.[4] ItsTaíno name wasIai[7] orAdamanay.Columbus named this island as Savona, after theItalian city of the same name, but the use during years has eliminated the letterv.
Beata, also on the southern coast. It has an area of 27 km2.[4] Its Taíno name is unknown. Columbus named this islandMadama Beata.
Catalina, very close to the southeastern coast. It has an area of 9.6 km2.[4] Its Taíno name wasIabanea[7] but some writers, including poets, say that it was calledToeya orToella.
The 8 longest rivers of the Dominican Republic are:[8]
Yaque del Norte. At 296 km, it is the longest river in the Dominican Republic. Its sources are in the Cordillera Central and flows to theAtlantic Ocean. Itswatershed has an area of 7,044 km2.
Yuna. It is 185 km long. Its sources are in the Cordillera Central and flows to the east intoSamaná Bay. Its watershed has an area of 5,498 km2.
Yaque del Sur. It is 183 km long and its sources are in the Cordillera Central. It flows to the south into theCaribbean Sea. Its watershed has an area of 4,972 km2.
Ozama. It is 148 km long. Its sources are in Sierra de Yamasá (a branch of the Cordillera Central). It flows into the Caribbean Sea. Its watershed has an area of 2,685 km2.
Camú. It is 137 km long. Its sources are in the Cordillera Central and flows into the Yuna River. Its watershed has 2,655 km2.
Nizao. It is 133 km long. Its sources are in the Cordillera Central and flows to the south into theCaribbean Sea. Its watershed has an area of 974 km2.
San Juan. It is 121 km long. Its sources are in the Cordillera Central and flows to the south into the Yaque del Sur River. Its watershed has an area of 2,005 km2.
Mao. It is 105 km long. Its sources are in the Cordillera Central and flows to the north into the Yaque del Norte River. Its watershed has an area of 864 km2.
TheArtibonite River is the longest river of the island, but only 68 km flows through the Dominican Republic.
The largest lake of Hispaniola, and of theCaribbean, isLake Enriquillo. It is located in theHoya de Enriquillo with an area of 265 km2. There are three small islands within the lake. It is around 40 meters below sea level, and is ahypersaline lake, with a higher concentration of salt than seawater.
Other lakes areRincón (fresh water, area of 28.2 km2),Oviedo (brackish water, area of 28 km2),Redonda, andLimón.
^Butterlin, Jacques (1977).Géologie Structural de la Région des Caraïbes (in French). Paris: Masson. pp. 110–111.ISBN2-225-44979-1.
^abAs shown in a map made by Andrés Morales in 1508 and published in 1516.InVega, Bernardo (1989).Los Cacicazgos de la Hispaniola. Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic: Museo del Hombre Dominicano. p. 88.
^De la Fuente, Santiago (1976).Geografía Dominicana. Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic: Editora Colegial Quisqueyana. pp. 110–114.
_Saman%25C3%25A1%2c_DR.JPG)
.JPG)
